For the past 11-plus years, I have had the honor and pleasure of serving on the Columbia County Board of Education. I am thankful for all the support that I have received and the friendships I have made. Columbia County truly is blessed to have such a tremendous team of educators, support staff and volunteers to provide a first-rate educational opportunity for our students.

I’m writing to wholeheartedly endorse my good friend Lee Anderson in the Republican run-off election for the 12th District congressional seat.

I’ve known Lee for decades. He is a man of great character, and I know he will represent us well in Washington. Lee knows what it means to be a public servant, and that is what we need from our next congressman.

It didn’t receive much attention in the state’s media outlets, but it’s worth noting that the transportation sales tax campaign saw a major change in the framing of the most basic political question of all: Should taxes ever be increased?

There was once a time when people could agree that, while taxes were an unpopular thing, you sometimes had to raise them to pay for services that a state or community needs.

From tornadoes to flash floods and hurricanes to earthquakes, history proves that emergencies can happen unexpectedly and impact communities of all sizes. Many Georgians can attest to that, having experienced their fair share of severe weather in recent years. And with the peak of the hurricane season still ahead, there’s a good chance that we’ll face more severe weather before the year is out.

I haven’t seen any follow up on Columbia County’s proposed BMX/skateboard park. This project has been on the county’s recreation master plan for many years. This facility will serve well the youth who are forced to ride on public roads as there is nowhere else for them to go.

BMX is part of the Olympics! Can’t we finally get together and get this done? It’s sad that there are many kids who don’t take to the county’s “mainstream” sports that have nowhere to go.